DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Information Disclosure Statement
Information disclosure statements filed 12/02/2025 and 7/12/2024 have been considered.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1,4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by US Patent Application Publication No. US 2019/0056552 A1 to Sakamoto et al. (hereinafter “Sakamoto”).
Regarding claim 1, Sakamoto discloses an optical multiplexer (Fig. 8) comprising: input waveguides (201, 202, 203) for respectively receiving a plurality of visible light beams of different wavelengths (paragraph [0050]); a directional coupler (204 in Fig. 8; also 205, 207) for multiplexing the plurality of visible light beams; and an output waveguide (208) for outputting the multiplexed light, wherein at least one of the input waveguides connected to the directional coupler and the output waveguide have a tapered structure (paragraph [0049]).
Regarding claim 4, Sakamoto discloses wherein the plurality of visible light beams of different wavelengths include at least a red, a green, and a blue light beam (paragraph [0050]).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 2-3, 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sakamoto in view of WO 2008/108422 A1 (hereinafter “WO’422”).
Regarding claim 2, Sakamoto discloses an optical multiplexer according to claim 1 as discussed above. However, it does not explicitly disclose that the tapered structure is provided in a curved section of the waveguides as claimed in the present application. Nevertheless, such a curved waveguide is known in the art as taught by WO’422. WO’422 discloses an optical multiplexer wherein a tapered structure is provided in a curved section of a waveguide (Fig. 1-2). One of ordinary skill in the art would readily recognize such features as advantageous and desirable, since they would prevent any mode mixing for both short and long wavelength lights and allow for high fidelity optical multiplexing. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the present application to modify the device of Sakamoto to have the tapered structure being provided in a curved section of the waveguide as claimed in the present application.
Regarding claim 3, Sakamoto discloses an optical multiplexer according to claim 1 as discussed above. However, it does not explicitly disclose that the waveguides in an optical coupling section of the directional coupler have a width of 0.8 to 1.4pm as claimed. On the other hand, it has been established that “where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, it is not inventive to discover the optimum or workable ranges by routine experimentation” In re Aller, 220 F.2d 454, 456, 105 USPQ 233, 235 (CCPA 1955). MPEP 2144.05. In the present case, the general conditions of the claimed optical multiplexer are disclosed by Sakamoto and WO’ 422 as already discussed above. As such, it is not inventive to discover the optimum or workable ranges of optical waveguide width. A width of 0.8 to 1.4pm would have been readily recognized as advantageous and desirable to one of ordinary skill in the art since it would ensure optimum evanescent coupling of light between the waveguides for high fidelity optical multiplexer operation. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the present application to modify the device of Sakamoto to have the waveguides in an optical coupling section of the directional coupler have a width of 0.8 to 1.4pm as claimed in the present application.
Regarding claim 5, Sakamoto discloses an optical multiplexer according to claim 1 as discussed above. Although Sakamoto discloses the use of multiple color light wavelengths (e.g. red, green, blue), it does not explicitly disclose that the optical multiplexer is used in an image projector as claimed in the present application. On the other hand, the use of a multi color optical multiplexer in an image projector is well known and common in the art. Such use of an image projector having a multi color optical multiplexer would have been readily recognized as advantageous and desirable to one of ordinary skill in the art since it would allow for routing of light using a single optical path and allows for creation of a compact, space-efficient image projector device. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify the device of Sakamoto and WO’422 to have the optical multiplexer be used in an image projector as claimed in the present application.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SUNG H PAK whose telephone number is (571)272-2353. The examiner can normally be reached M-F: 7AM- 5PM.
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/SUNG H PAK/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2874
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